Genealogy Chat

Please can someone help with ideas on where to look next? I have a male ancestor, Henry BAYNE, who signed an illegitimate daughters birth cert as the father in 1856. That daughters marriage in 1895 states the parents as both being called Bayne, though the father was married to someone else at the time of the childs birth AND her marriage!!, and the mother deceased. I suppose she maybe said they were married to save face? Subsequent searches for the mother FLORA GRANT have not been successful. I can only guess at her age, but I've searched all of Fife and come up with a few who might fit on 1871, 1881 & 1891 census, allowing for a year or two either way, as seemed 'normal' in those days. I can't however find any marriage or even death record for her...........as she was obviously alive to give birth in 1856, I thought I'd find her easily enough in Statutory death records. Any suggestions, short of a medium, would be a huge help to me. As my main line is Bayne, I can just about survive if i don't find her, but I'm sure you'll know what i mean when I say this is one I just can't get out of my system. thanks to all for reading this. Gillian

Hi Gillian, I am in the same boat, my GGM had my grandad named Sparshott (surname) but he was always known as Mulvey and was brought up by a man called James Mulvey. I can't find a marriage certificate and my grandad's birth certificate named him as Ernest Walter (I've always known him as Vincent). Confused yet!!! I am..... Good luck you'll need it!!

Is the illegitimate daughter living with Flora on any of the censuses - what name does Flora have there, what is her age and occupation? nell

here's the interesting bit........illegitimate daughter was given the name Marjory. She seems to have been brought up by the father and his wife, named........marjory!!! I sort of think that the new wife (they were married same year Flora gave birth!) agreed to take on the child as long as she was given her name??? Seems a very forgiving wife if that's the case. I haven't found any Flora grants with any child to match. I did think maybe flora died in childbirth, but again, 1856, that would need to be registered as statutory. Now you can see why i can't let this little mystery go.........

Have you tried looking for her death in the name of Flora Bayne? The death of my great-grandfather's first 'wife', who he doesn't seem to have been officially married to, is listed under his surname, not hers, but admittedly that was in England (although she was from Scotland) and I don't know if they could have done the same in Scotland.